Beauty in the Water
by Ghost Assist
Summary: Feferi is a marine biologist who hears that a sea creature is stuck in a lake. She decides to help.


One of Feferi's friends told her about a new species of fish near the lake by her home.

"It's as big as a baby whale!" Eridan had told her. His clothes were still wet from his adventure and he still had his goggles on.

Feferi shook her head,"Eridan, what are you going about this time? Didn't you say you spotted Bigfoot while you went hiking just last week ago? I certainly hope this isn't another prank from your friends."

Eridan crossed his arms. "Okay, first thing's first, Sollux and Karkat are merely acquaintances. Second, neither of those bumblin' idiots know how to swim. And finally, Fef, you already know that I go with you to the lake every week! I know as much about it as you do, so I'm tellin' you that some creature is down there!"

It took Eridan a while to convince Feferi that there was a new species of fish in the lake, and it wasn't just Karkat in a wet suit. Really.

"It could have been that flood last week, he explained as he attempted to replicate the fish's tale on paper." He continued to draw the same generic fish tale shape over and over again. He gave up as soon as he realized that Feferi was already heading outside to get her bike. He tossed down the pencils and followed after her.

"If your right, then we have to get that poor creature out of there as soon as possible! It's probably suffering from the different temperature, water pressure, and everything," Feferi said.

"Yeah, I know! That's why I came over here," Eridan replied. He held out his hand, and Feferi instinctively handed him her cell phone.

"Left your phone at your house again?" Feferi asked as she got on her bike.

"Maybe, but let's not dwell on dumb matters," Eridan replied nonchalantly. "Anyway, I'm going to call my brother. I'm pretty sure that he'll be perfectly okay with lending us his truck to help out an aquatic animal."

"Isn't his college two hours in-land?"

"Yup. We also need to find a hose and some sort of waterproof material to hold all the water in the back, but I'm sure he might know someone in the college's marine labs," Eridan said as he began to dial.

"I'll leave you too it. I should go look for the poor thing, we'll probably save more time this way," Feferi announced. She pulled up the leg brake of her bike, and began cycling down the street. Eridan doesn't call to her, so Feferi is certain that he's okay with her leaving.

Feferi traveled to the lake at light speed. If a person would walk, the lake would be five minutes away from Feferi's house. With a bike, the lake was 2 minutes away. Feferi arrived to the lake in 1 minute.

Feferi has lived by the lake since she was born. Her mother was one of the major marine biologist around town and wanted a house near both the sea and the lake. Eventually, Feferi's mom found a place here. And because of her mother's profession, Feferi had too inherited the love and fascination of marine life. Her mother and her would go to the lake almost every day, and just stare at the fish. As Feferi grew older, her mother began teaching her the scientific names of the fish. And when Feferi was independent enough to go to the lake by herself, she began studying the characteristics and looks of all the marine life.

Then, she meets Eridan, and he shows Feferi the strange and creepy side of fishes. He was a deep fish enthusiast, and while Feferi wasn't too keen on learning about them at first, she eventually grew to love learning about these mysterious sea dwellers. Feferi wanted to learn more about these creatures.

Feferi saw the beauty in the depths of the ocean, and she often wondered about the truth behind reality and mythology. Back then, people claimed they saw 50 foot squid creatures, or turtles the size of islands. As much as Feferi was dedicated to the science of marine biology, she was equally interested in marine mythology. See, nobody ever explored the dark depths of the Pacific, there was no proof that those sailors were ever wrong. It's what they saw, and none of them are alive to defend their own eyes! These mythological sea creatures interested Feferi as much as the real one. She wanted to see them. She wanted to see these monsters of the depths, but what Feferi wanted to see the most, was mermaids.

Yes, mermaids... Especially mermaids.

Feferi stopped her bicycle and quietly threw down her helmet. There was a tail just sticking out of the water! The trees and vegetation around the path towards the lake hindered Feferi's sight, but she realized that Eridan was indeed correct. The tail size was much too large to belong to a dolphin, but the shape and fat on the tail closely resembles one of a matinee. However, matinees don't live in the beach by this lake.

Feferi took a step closer and realizes that a girl was swimming with the creature!

A fellow marine biologist? Feferi can't hold her excitement. She pulled her bicycle along and called loudly "Hello? You over there! Do you live around here?"

The girl's eyes widen, and she disappears under the water. Feferi,s outburst must have startled the creature as well. Its tail submerges into the lake.

Instantly, Feferi threw her shoes next to her bike and striped down to her bathing suit. (And of course she has a bathing suit, she's a marine biologist in training who lives near a lake. )

"Wait, fuck!" Feferi ran back to her clothes and retrieved her goggles from her pocket. The teen ran to the water full speed ahead and wades along the shore of the lake.

Taking a look around, Feferi called ,"Don't worry. This lake is definitely for public use, our family doesn't mind!" Feferi yelled. "And there goes another potential friend. Feferi sighed. Her mother's reputation as a badass absolutely hampers Feferi's ability to make friends.

Giving up, and acknowledging that whoever was in here probably ran off, Feferi adorned the goggles. She dived into the water and swiftly made her way to the area she was certain she saw the creature's tail.

The teen surveyed the surface of the lake. There appeared to be no disturbances around this area. Feferi took a deep breath and swam southward. She repeated her earlier evaluation of the surface. Again, there were no disturbances.

Feferi continued to look around.

After swimming around for a while Feferi decided to take a small break. It's a shame that in her excitement, she has chased away the sea creature and the mysterious lake visitor.

Feferi dragged herself out of the water and sat by the shore of the lake. She left her phone with Eridan, so she's not able to check up on the truck's status. She stretched her arms and sighed. Feferi is able to see most of the lake's surface if she climbed up on one of the nearby trees, but she isn't in the mood to put on her clothes and get them wet. Instead, Feferi just sat along the shore, and hoped that the visitor would appear soon. She was right. In the distance, Feferi saw a hand sticking just above the water! Feferi slowly slipped into the water this time around and quietly made her way to the center of the lake. She wouldn't want to startle them again.

She could hear splashing; really loud splashing. Feferi grew worried. It's possible that she's been detected once again, and the person was making an attempt to flee. Another theory: the person had stayed in the water to calm the creature Feferi had startled when she made her outburst. Oh, that poor sea creature must be so stressed out by her loud call! Feferi scolded herself in her head. She should have known better! If this was a dolphin or other sea mammal, like Eridan had said, they would react violently to an extremely loud noise.

"Hey, do you need help?" Feferi called out (and not yelled.)

It's a good thing her goggles were still on, because as Feferi approaches her target, the violent splashes grew in size and in numbers. "Hey, if we work together, we could get this poor creature out of the lake," Feferi attempted to call over the sound. This might be a whale of some sort, because its tail strength must be incredible to produce waves of this magnitude. Feferi now realizes that whoever owned the hand she saw earlier might be in serious trouble.

Finally, just about a few feet away, Feferi could see the outline of a person in the water. They appeared to be struggling, and circling around the area. "Hey, I'm coming over to help!" Feferi said as she began swimming closing. As she is swimming, Feferi swears she could hear a "no." The teen resurfaced, and looked in front of her.

"No," said the girl about Feferi's age. Upon approaching the girl closer, Feferi can see that she was nude. Feferi can only assume that she must have lost her clothes while she grappled with the sea creature and she was embarrassed about it.

"It's okay! I understand, you must have been in here for a long time trying to find the creature a way out," Feferi said. "Don't worry though, because my friend and I are here to help you."

The girl's posture was defensive: her arms were crossed and her shoulders were raised. Under her eyes were dark bags, and her skin appeared to be turning pale. It's as if she in the snow rather than a lake! The girl's green eyes surveyed Feferi, and often darted side to side, as if she was awaiting an attack. "Are... you okay?" Feferi asked a bit concerned. This person really didn't look so good; she looks almost like she hasn't eaten in a week.

The girl once again shock her head. "No, I'm not okay. But I can manage myself," she spoke as if she was trying to motivate herself. She clenched her fist, and she sunk farther underwater.

Feferi reached for the other teen's arm. Instantly, the girl swatted Feferi away. She was fast for someone who looked like they haven't slept in a while. "I know you want to help it get out of this place seeing as it would die if we don't remove it, but you need to look after yourself too," Feferi pleaded.

"Huh?" The girl asked in confusion. "W-what are you talking about, you crazy huma- person!"

"The sea creature!" Feferi exasperated. "The one that was next to you about thirty minutes ago! The one that was making all of those waves? The one with the humongous tail that's too big to belong to any of the local animals in this lake? Does that ring a bell?" Feferi continued a tad bit angry. Why was this person so secretive? Feferi can clearly see through the other girl's eyes that she wants Feferi to help her.

The girl looked like she was just processing Feferi's words until her mouth fell open slightly. She began stuttering," Y-yeah. The 'fish'. The one that came from the ocean and got stuck in the middle of the lake..." The girl said. Her voice grew softer and softer until Feferi was not able to hear her." Don't... worry. I'll handle..." The girl said as her body began to sway from side to side.

Feferi's eyes widen. The girl's eye shut tight, and her body leaned forward. Feferi rushed to the girl and grabbed her by the torso. She fainted, and Feferi had lost the sea creature again. Feferi sighed and began dragging the girl toward the shore. Along the way, Feferi felt something brush up against her leg, but she paid no mind to it. She was focused on rescuing the girl. She definitely doesn't want water to go up her mouth or nose.

By the time Feferi made it to the shore of the lake, she was exhausted. She began hauling the mysterious young woman to the beach and immediately found out that she was not hauling a mysterious young woman. Feferi looked down at the mysterious girl's legs and saw a fish tail instead.

Feferi's eyes widened, and she slowly lowered the creature's head on the ground. Then, she backed away slowly, hesitantly. Feferi shock her head and mumbled," Okay. I'm tired from all that swimming. If I look away, then look back, she's going to be completely human." So, Feferi did just that. It didn't work. Sighing, she ran to her backpack. Occasionally she would glance back at the person she left by the shore. Still a fish.

Feferi grabbed her t-shirt from the pack, and rushed back worriedly. Since Feferi was not the thinnest of people, her shirt looked silly on the other girl's petite frame. "Does clothes even help fish people when they're sick?" Feferi asked herself. Obviously, she hasn't studied the biology of beings that were half-human and half-fish. Her first instinct was to carry this girl on her bike to her house and give her a blanket and a hot cup of coffee. It's clearly obvious how that plan wouldn't work. Plus, this person is not like a fish where you just can throw her into her appropriate environment and hope that she feels better. Wow, this was really mind boggling.

Feferi is looking at mermaid right now. She's sitting right next to a mermaid on the shore of a lake. Feferi's mouth fell open, and she whispered, "Ohh, no." She stared at the unconscious mermaid and realized that this mermaid was the sea creature Eridan had claimed to be washed into the lake by the flood. Freaking out, Feferi had unknowingly woken up said sea creature. Feferi heard a loud gasp from beside her, and stopped her freak out session.

"Hu-human! I told you to go away," the mermaid said coughing. She groggily sat up, and folded her tail as if she were kneeling. "I'm in so much trouble," the mermaid cried out. She looked utterly miserable. She must have been extremely hardy to have endured a week in a whole different biome. If Feferi was in a similar situation, she's not sure she would have survived.

The mermaid didn't seem to flinch when Feferi approached her. If anything, the mermaid was just too tired to struggle against her. Reluctantly, Feferi placed a hand on the mermaid's shoulder. It seemed that the other girl had taken a liking to Feferi's clothes and had promptly sunk her face into the collar. She might be doing that out of pure defensive instinct, but Feferi liked to think that the shirt comforted the lost mermaid.

"No! You're not in trouble at all," Feferi said calmly. "I'm here to help you," she said with the hint of a friendly smile. The other looked at her with wide eyes. Her face conveyed several mixed up emotions. At first her eyebrows contorted together and her mouth dropped slightly. The mermaid seemed like she was about to say something, but quickly changed her mind. She stared at Feferi with tired eyes, and nodded her head slowly.

Feferi didn't feel like she should speak, least she somehow ruin's the other girl's train of thought. The mermaid seemed to be evaluating her own condition, and was surprised when she looked down at her torso. Feferi took advantage of the mermaid's surprise, and made an effort to introduce herself.

"If you're wondering, yes, that shirt is mine." Feferi beamed a smile at the confused mermaid. "I'm Feferi, by the way!"

"I'm Nepeta," Nepeta replied. Her face had relaxed and her sitting posture seemed more natural. She adjusted her sitting position and let her tail free from its constraints to sway side to side on the shore. Her expression now looked curious. Her head tilted to the side, and she appeared to look more hopeful of her situation. "I don't belong here Feferi," Nepeta said sadly.

Feferi sighed in relief. She wasn't so sure if Nepeta would trust her so easily since she was so startled earlier. "I know. A friend of mine is going to bring the materials we need to take you out of here, Nepeta. We know that you're sick and you need to go home," Feferi said. "Do you remember how you got into this lake Nepeta?" Feferi had a good theory on what probably happened to Nepeta, but she wanted to hear her version of the turn of events.

"Ah, I don't really remember how I ended up in such an awful place like this," Nepeta said. Her eyes wandered around the surrounding environment. "I lived in a place without any of these tall structures. You could see the clouds from every direction you turn, and when the glowing orb returns to the ocean, it displays such a beautiful scene," the mermaid said wistfully. Shaking her head, she murmured "I should not have strayed from my home."

"That totally sucks!" Feferi huffed. "But why were you in such a dangerous place, Nepeta? Surely you knew about the incoming storm," Feferi asked. Wasn't it a sort of instinct for fish to detect harsh waters or something? Wasn't that a bird thing? Feferi isn't too sure.

"There was a strange four-legged creature sitting inside one of the human structures. It was nothing like I've ever seen before!" Nepeta said in wonder. "It seemed that it four of these," Nepeta stated while holding out her arms. "But unlike humans, like you, it didn't walk on two of them. And it had a tail like mine," Nepeta said as she twisted her body to point at her tail. "But it wasn't like mine. It was thinner, and it looked like it had hair all over it!" Nepeta's eyes were blown wide, and a small smile appeared on her face.

"It was so cute!" Nepeta exclaimed.

Feferi thought for a bit. The only person who lived really close to the beach was Ms. Meulin and her cat... "Are you talking about a cat?" Feferi asked. She didn't have her phone with her to show Nepeta a picture, but Feferi had held her hands up beside her head, and attempted to mimic cat ears. "Was it like this?" she asked the amuse mermaid.

"Yes! Yes! A cat," Nepeta said with a slight giggle. "It reminded me of myself! It's so cute and cuddly!" Feferi laughed. A cat-obsessed mermaid? What's next? A CEO who's secretly a wizard? The thought that such a mystical creature is too lured by the absolute adorableness of cats was too cute for Feferi to handle.

"Oh my goodness, Nepeta, you're adorable," Feferi said.

Nepeta shook her head in embarrassment. "Thank you. I don't really regret going to see that um-cat," Nepeta confessed. "It was my own fault for being so careless," she said appearing to be annoyed with herself.

"I keep doing stuff like this!" Nepeta exasperated. "The last time I had done this, I was chasing down dinner and was suddenly caught in a current!"

Feferi was thoroughly invested in Nepeta's story. Feferi urged Nepeta to go on. "Where did you end up?"

"I was swept up into the colder waters. I was pretty lucky because my one of my friend's lover was a resident of the colder waters. She came up there and help me navigate through those treacherous icy rocks," Nepeta recalled.

"Oh, you address your mates as lovers?"

"Mates?," Nepeta asked in confusion. Then she upon realization she replied, "Oh! No, I think it's just me. We don't have a name for these relationships since the concept doesn't apply to most of our kind."

"Wow, that's pretty cool! So not all of your species had reproductive partners?" Feferi asked genuinely curious.

Nepeta's face appeared thoughtful. After a while of thinking, she replied," Well, it's kind of risky to have a calf. I guess that our life spans are longer than most human." Feferi nodded along. "Some of use prefer partners of the same species," Nepeta said with a blush on her face. Feferi seemed to have missed the obvious 'hey, i think you're cute hint'. Seeing that she will get no response, Nepeta continued, "But, there are some members of our species, um they call themselves sirens, who prefer no partner at all. Instead, they like hanging out near the colder waters or the rocky islands and um, eat humans," Nepeta cringed.

"Oh my," Feferi replied. "I guess I was pretty audacious for assuming that heterosexuality was the default of most species."

"Hete- what?" Nepeta asked.

"Pfft, it's nothing! Just a silly human thing," Feferi replied. "But I''m so amazed, Nepeta!" Feferi would absolutely love a life like Nepeta's. What would it be like to live in such a beautiful world full of sea creatures and coral, and water! Oh, the thought was so appealing, Feferi wished she were a mermaid.

Nepeta smiled kindly, and her head tilted sideways. "Oh, did I say that whole thing out loud?" Feferi asked.

"Heh, yeah you did," Nepeta replied. The two girls stopped talking, and shared a comfortable silence. They seem to have noticed their physical closeness, but neither seemed appalled by the discovery. After a while of staring at the lake (And maybe a side glance of each other,) Nepeta said," I think I know you, Feferi."

Feferi would have missed Nepeta's comment because the marine biologist seem very invested in Nepeta's hands. The mermaid's fingernails seemed to be rather long. Were they used to lure out crustaceans out of their shells? Nepeta's nails seem to have been grinded down. Was that a custom among mermaids, or was it personal preference? Oh, Feferi has never been so interested in someone how she's enamored with Nepeta. " R-really?" Feferi managed to say after she realized that she was being spoken too. "I frequent the beach in search of fish to study, so I can see how you would recognize me," Feferi added awkwardly.

"You were the first human I ever saw," Nepeta said. She blushed heavily and continued," I thought you were so beautiful." Nepeta turned to face her new companion; her dark face displayed tints of red on her checks. Feferi thought that it was absolutely adorable.

"Oh gosh," Feferi replied.

There was another brief silence, but this one lasted just a tad bit longer. Both girls were blushing, and although Feferi had just met Nepeta, she really really liked her. Without another thought, Feferi maneuvered herself right beside her new friend. Their shoulders bumped together and Feferi waited for any signs of protest. Nepeta doesn't seem to mind the invasion of space, which allowed Feferi to closely observe the sea dweller's unique anatomy. Under harsh sunlight, Nepeta's scales reflected a remarkable green hue. The scales were absolutely gorgeous and without much thought, Feferi immediately pressed a hand on the mermaid's tail.

Once again, Nepeta didn't protest at all. Instead, she silently watched Feferi examine the scales. There were hints of teeth scars and tentacle scars along the edges of the tail fins. "You must be a powerful hunter," Feferi deduced. These scarring marks must have been made by something three times Nepeta's height.

"Yes. I had mistakenly captured one of the legs of a large beast. I was too excited, and had misjudged its size," Nepeta said with a frown. "Humans don't hunt cats do they?" Nepeta asked in horror.

Feferi laughed as she continued to observe the finer details of the mermaid's scales. "I'm very sure that human's don't hunt the average house cat for a meal."

"Good," Nepeta replied with relief.

Suddenly Nepeta stiffed up, and Feferi hadn't realized that her hands were tracing along dorsal fin. Feferi lifted her hand up immediately and sputtered a quick, "Sorry!"

The very embarrassed teen felt a hand on her wrist and reluctantly looked at the other girl. "It's okay. I was just shocked is all!" Nepeta explained. "It's perfectly okay among lovers- or friends!" Nepeta said in a ditsy.

Oh god, mermaids are so cute. Nepeta was so cute. And didn't this utterly adorable mermaid just call Feferi beautiful earlier? Feferi smiled, and simply leaned into Nepeta. Then, she planted a small kiss on her check.

Suddenly, Nepeta gently pulled her forward and kissed her delicately on the lips. "Was that okay?" she asked. The human girl grinned.

"Definitely!"

"Fef!" called a voice in the distance. Feferi could hear the locking alarm of the Ampora's shared truck beeping. "I forgot to give you your phone back. Did you catch the sea creature or what?"

"Oh, that's my friend," Feferi said as she turned to Nepeta. Since the two were practically interlocked with each other, Feferi didn't have to lean in to whisper," I think you're going to like him."

Nepeta giggled and nodded her head. Gosh, she's such a cutie. "I don't mind. The more the merrier," she replied.

"I found a mermaid!" Feferi yelled to the approaching Eridan. "And she's my new girlfriend."

He laughed and said," Yeah, right!" The teen emerged from the forest path and looked toward the direction he heard his friend's voice. "Then show me this... mermaid?"

The two girls laugh loudly as the confused, but excited teen stared in wonder. Like Feferi anticipated, he took the surprise well.

At the end of the day, Feferi and Eridan manage to load Nepeta into the back of the truck. Feferi spent the whole ride sitting in the back of the truck, staring at her mermaid girlfriend sleep in the makeshift aquarium. They return Nepeta to the ocean when the sun had already set and the moon hung brightly above the sky.

Feferi stared in wonder as Nepeta vanished beneath the dark ocean. She knows that tomorrow, Nepeta will be here again.

**The End**

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**A/N: Thanks for reading! There's a picture that goes with this, but I guess fanfic still doesn't allow that stuff huh? **


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